Asparagus setaceusAsparagus Fern

Despite the common name, Asparagus setaceus is not a fern at all but a scrambling South African perennial whose flattened sprays of fine cladodes mimic frond texture almost exactly. Young plants form a soft mound; with age they throw wiry climbing stems that will run to three metres or more over a support.

The fine texture is the point. It softens hard edges, fills the base of a trellis, and holds well in low light, which is why it has been an interior and shaded-courtyard staple for a century.

Specifications

• HeightClimbs to 3 metres with support, or holds as a compact mound 0.3 to 0.5 metres when young
• Width1.0 to 2.0 metres
• Native toSouthern and eastern Africa
• FoliageFlat, feathery sprays of fine bright green cladodes on wiry stems; evergreen
• Growth rateFast

Conditions

• SoilPrefers free-draining loamy soils with some organic matter
• LightPartial shade to bright indirect light; scorches in strong direct sun
• WaterModerate; tolerates short dry spells once established
• ClimateThrives in tropical and subtropical regions; frost sensitive

Additional Features

• UsesInterior planting, shaded courtyard beds, trellis and planter softening, and cut foliage
• SpacingPlant 0.5 to 0.8 metres apart, or one plant per support
• Low MaintenanceCut out old stems at the base each year to keep the plant fresh
• Pest ResistanceGenerally robust; spider mite appears only in dry indoor air
• ToxicityThe small red berries are toxic if eaten, and the stems carry fine spines
• VersatilityWorks as a trailing planter subject, a climber or a shaded groundlayer

The Asparagus Fern gives shaded and interior schemes a fine-textured filler that few other plants match.